Obama reverses Bush ban on contraception and condoms
25 March 2009
In September 2008, the Bush administration abruptly ordered developing countries to stop providing US-funded contraceptives to the reproductive health organisation, Marie Stopes International (MSI).
The decision disrupted family planning programmes in at least six African countries - Ghana, Malawi, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Uganda and Zimbabwe - where MSI provides up to one-third of the contraception distributed nationally.
Last week, the ban was reversed when the US government's development agency USAID instructed US Missions in affected countries to resume the distribution of USAID-funded supplies to MSI.
Responding to the reversal of the ban, DFID Minister Ivan Lewis said: "I welcome this move that will improve the lives of vulnerable women and girls by helping them access vital contraception and condoms. Good policy should be based on the evidence of what works, and I commend the Obama administration's move to again allow Marie Stopes International access to US funded supplies."
The ban had the potential to seriously undermine global and national efforts to improve women and adolescent girls' access to contraception and condoms. Following the ban, DFID, in partnership with other EU donors, worked with MSI and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) to ensure that the disruption to family planning services was minimised.
Thanks to this work, more than 7 million units of contraceptive supplies were
provided to keep vital family planning services running – many in remote and
rural areas where women had no alternative supplier.
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Facts and figures
Sexual and reproductive ill health accounts for one-third of the global burden of disease among women of reproductive age (15 to 49 years of age). This accounts for one-fourth of the burden of disease among the population overall. The greatest impact of poor sexual and reproductive health is on the most disadvantaged groups, especially women and children, and disproportionately affects people in low income countries. As a result:
- One hundred and thirty-seven million couples who want to limit their family size have no access to modern contraception and a further 64 million are relying on traditional but less effective methods. This results in an estimated 87 million unintended pregnancies every year.
- Every year an estimated 20 million women risk an unsafe abortion, and 68,000 die. Worldwide this accounts for one in ten of all pregnancies ending in unsafe abortion and causes 13% of all pregnancy-related deaths.
- Condoms are a major means of preventing sexually transmitted infections, including HIV. Young people aged between 15 and 24 years old account for 50% of new HIV infections. In Africa, 90% of all HIV infections are sexually transmitted, with young people and women disproportionately affected.
- Family planning alone has the potential to reduce poverty and avert 25-30% of all maternal deaths.
